First Year Findings
by Lindsey Loo
Summary: Rose's first year at Hogwarts is just about everything she bargained for. But when she first met that boy Scorpius Malfoy, she knew he would be bad news, but is he really? Rose is finding out that he isn't all that bad. But their family history says they shouldn't be friends, what will she do?
1. Just Like Fred and George

**AUTHOR'S NOTE: Hey! Thanks for reading! Basically set in the "19 years later" part of Deathly Hallows. I'm writing based off of the books, although sometimes the movies may show through a bit. I've changed some of the characters ages in order to fit them into the story better. But most of the information goes along with the books. I hope you enjoy! **

Chapter 1: Just Like Fred & George

The day was bright and not a cloud was in the sky as the Weasley family finished breakfast. Uncle Harry and aunt Ginny were visiting for the morning and the younger kids, Rose's brother Hugo, and her cousin Lily were running around the kitchen table trying to catch a bewitched biscuit that Uncle Harry was floating around. Rose's cousins James and Albus were upstairs somewhere trying to appease their parents by staying out of trouble, but Rose knew that Albus was just as anxious as she was to receive his letter and probably asking James question after question about Hogwarts even though he'd heard the answers many many times. They were to be in the same year and neither hadn't received their letters yet. While the two younger children were laughing and carrying on, Rose Weasley was particularly entranced by the enchantment. She'd always loved it when magic was performed, which was all the time, and she loved showing her muggle grandparents what she could do without a wand, but she so desperately wanted her own wand to hold and use and _have_.

"I learned how to do that spell from _Standard Book of Spells_," she said, "Could I borrow your wand Uncle Harry?"

"You most certainly cannot," Hermione Weasley exclaimed from the kitchen. "Rose Cassandra Weasley! You know better than to ask to use the adults' wands, it's rude. Only if they offer, then you may accept." Her voice and face were stern, but when she saw the shamed look on her daughter's face she smiled and tenderly said, "Don't worry, love. You'll get your wand soon."

"But I haven't even received my letter yet," Rose whimpered. "I don't think it's ever coming."

"Give it time," Uncle Harry said, ruffling the hair on top of her head, which didn't do much damage considering her hair was the same bushy curly mess as her mothers, only bright red. "I'm sure the Headmistress will send them out soon."

Uncle Harry walked out of the room with Hugo and Lily following suit. Lily pounced on his back and rode piggy-back style out into the garden, while Rose sat at the table staring into her lap trying not to cry. She wanted so badly to go to Hogwarts. So badly.

"Here, little girl," a voice said and she saw a hand in front of her holding out a wand for her to try. It was Teddy Lupin who was practically her cousin for all intensive purposes and his bright blue hair was wilder than ever, a huge grin on his face. Rose's face lit up and she took his wand. She went to give a swish, but stopped.

"W-won't you get into trouble if I do magic with your wand? You're not allowed outside of Hogwarts." She bit her lip.

"Nahh," he said, putting his arm around her. "Not for little spells like this. Besides, McGonagall loves me. She won't let me get into trouble." He winked.

Rose smiled yet again and went for it. She fixed her wand and her gaze on the teapot on the table and gave his wand a swish and a flick. "Wingardium Leviosa," she said. Slowly but surely the empty teapot rose into the air, inch by inch, until it was floating at eye level. Rose tried to make it go higher, but it wouldn't.

"Brilliant," Teddy said quietly beside Rose, but she was so excited she looked over at him, taking her concentration off of the spell and the teapot came to a crash on the kitchen table. For a moment Rose was stunned.

Then she heard a yell, "ARRGGHH" from the kitchen and Hermione's steps could be heard coming closer. "Rose Weasley! What did I tell you?"

"Run!" Teddy yelled, and together they leapt from the table and ran into the garden. Apparently, Rose was too slow, so Teddy lifted her up, running farther and farther to the shed in the backyard full of broomsticks, and gnome food, herbal potions, a muggle lawn mower given to her mother and father as a wedding present from her muggle granddad that had never seen the light of day, etc. Teddy let go of Rose before running into the shed and flying out on his broom. Rose laughed as he darted around and around the yard. Hermione came running out of the house yelling at him, but trying to hold in her laughter. And Teddy just waved and mockingly blew her a kiss.

"More and more like Fred and George every day," she told her husband before finishing up the breakfast dish charms.

Rose sat down on the ground, picking at the grass and braiding to make a necklace. "Rosie!" a voice called behind her. Lily was flying along with Teddy on his broom, but now Victoire was hovering beside him on her broomstick. Once she'd heard that Teddy was to be in there, she was at the house by dawn. "We're going to race! Hop on with Victoire!" Rose smiled and climbed up onto the broomstick. She held on tight to Victoire's waist and went along for the ride.

It was a wonderful way for Rose to get her mind off of the letters that had yet to come. Teddy and Lily were in the lead, being that Teddy was far too competitive, but Victoire was flying swiftly behind him, allowing him to take the lead which didn't bother Rose at all. She was admiring the English countryside, and then before she knew it they were flying over London.

"How far have we gone?" she yelled to Victoire.

"About 200 miles," Victoire said. "I've never sat this long on a broomstick. I have no idea where Teddy's going!"

A pang of worry spread through Rose, which came as naturally as breathing. She was always worrying, just like her mother. She was just like her mother in many, many ways. She'd inherited the same bushy hair, same habits or worrying, studying, and thinking things through clearly. In the past few years, she'd found herself making pro and con lists for almost every decision.

Rose was pulled out of her thoughts by a sudden jolt downward, Victoire was following Teddy as he sped through London traffic and in and out of buildings. He was laughing and so was Lily. Victoire was smiling, but Rose knew that her mother would not approve of all of this. Rule-breaking was simply not tolerated. They weren't even supposed to leave home grounds, and now they were all the way in London.

In a back-alley somewhere Teddy set his feet on the ground and then Lily followed, her short eight year old legs barely reaching the ground. "Everyone stretch," Teddy said.

"Muggles, muggles, everywhere," Victoire said.

"Wanna have some fun with them?" Teddy asked. Victoire looked at him apprehensively, but he took out his wand and pointed at a muggle man's hat as he was walking by. The hat blew off as if a gust of wind had blown it straight from his head and angrily he turned around to pick it up off the ground, but just before he reached for it, Teddy made it fly another few feet. The man grumbled and tried to grab it again, but every time he got close, Teddy made it shoot out from underneath him. The man soon started getting very angry, and the four children were in fits of laughter.

"Come on," Teddy said. "We better get home soon." They walked maybe two blocks, taking back alleys as not to draw attention to their two huge fancy broomsticks and ended up at the Leaky Cauldron.

The four walked in, Tom sitting at the bar talking with an older wizard with an unsightly gray beard. "Teddy Lupin!" Tom cried when they walked in. "And who is this? Victoire Weasley? And these two young'uns must be Weasleys as well."

"Yes, Tom," Teddy said smiling. "This is little Lily Potter, so by blood she's a Weasley. And this soon to be Hogwarts student is Rose Weasley, daughter of Ron and Hermione."

"Well then," Tom said as four stools pulled out from under the bar. "Please have dinner here, on the house. It's not every day that two Weasleys, a Lupin, and a Potter, come into my pub."

"We really have to be getting home," Victoire said. "We may have strayed a little too far from the house," she smiled and winked. Rose couldn't help but notice that maybe this was something Teddy and Victoire had done before.

"I think you'll just need to borrow my fireplace, then," Tom smiled. "It's all yours."

Victoire went first, taking her broom with her. Lily went next, clearly saying the address of the house. And then Rose was to go with Teddy following her.

"1809 Amberdale Street, Devon." When Rose appeared in the fireplace in her house, she did not see Victoire and Lily, but rather her mother and Uncle Harry and Aunt Ginny. All three were standing in front of her with frowns on their faces. Victoire and Lily were behind them looking glum and a tad nervous as well. Rose looked at the ground as she moved out of the way for Teddy to come through. Once he was back the smile wiped quickly from his face.

After the Potters and Teddy had left, Rose was sitting in her room, waiting for her punishment from her mother. When the knock came from her door, she quietly whispered, "Come in."

Hermione came in with an apathetic smile and a plate of pumpkin pasties, Rose's favorite. "You know you can't do that at Hogwarts," she said. "Rule-breaking is simply not tolerated. And I don't want any owls coming home with letters telling me that you're in trouble, understand?"

"Yes mum," Rose said, her eyes never leaving her feet. She was kicking against the bed lightly and picking at her jeans.

"This came while you were out," Hermione said, pulling an envelope out of her pocket. Rose reached for it, hoping to the heavens that it was her letter and when she turned it right side up to get a look she saw it, the Hogwarts crest.

"My letter!" she yelled. "I'm in! I'm in! I'm going to Hogwarts!" Ron, who must have been outside the door burst in and picked her up, spinning her around and around.

"Well read it," he said, setting her back down. "What does it say?"

Excitedly, Rose ripped the envelope and read the letter aloud, "'Dear Miss Weasley, we are pleased to inform you that you have been accepted to Hogwarts school of witchcraft and wizardry." Rose jumped up and down and up and down! "I'm in! I'm in!"

"Yes you are!" her father hugged her and squeezed her so hard and she looked over to see her mother brushing a tear from her cheek.

"Don't worry mum!" she cried as her father set her back down. "I'll only be gone until Christmas, and then after that I will be back in June. I'm going to Hogwarts!"

"We'll go first thing tomorrow after breakfast to get your supplies. And maybe perhaps an owl or a cat."

"No cats," Ron said, giving his wife a look. Rose smiled.

"Okay, an owl then," her mum said.


	2. Hogwarts Express

Chapter 2: Hogwarts Express

The weeks leading up to the departure to Hogwarts were excruciating. She had a wand now that she absolutely was not allowed to use. Hermione even threatened to hide it from Rose until she was ready to leave if Rose didn't stop complaining. Not to mention, Rose had just about talked her parents' ears off about what she would do and the friends she would make. Hermione and Ron were tired of answering so many questions, but they did anyway because they remember how excited and nervous they were before their first year at Hogwarts.

The night before they were to leave for London, Rose was in bed reading through Hogwarts: A History the new edition. The battle of Hogwarts was her favorite chapter. It mentioned her parents and her Uncle Harry, practically her whole family. She'd read this chapter many many times and now she had her own copy from Flourish and Blotts that she would take to school and have for pleasure reading.

"It's incomparable how alike you and your mother are," Ron said stepping into her room.

Rose smiled. "Dad," she said as her face fell. "What if I don't fit in there? What if I can't make friends."

"You?" Ron said. "You'll make more friends than you know what to do with."

"How do you know?"

"Well, you're my daughter." He smiled.

Rose giggled. "Seriously, what if I run into people who don't particularly like me?"

"Well, love, you'll run into those people everywhere. There's always going to be people who think they are better than you, always going to be people who don't like you because you may be different from them, or they are jealous of you. But you can't let those people get you down. You hold your head high and say, 'I'm a Weasley'."

"Okay, dad," she said. Then, Ron kissed her head and set her book on the nightstand.

"Knox," he said.

The next day, the Weasley family was running late, to Hermione's dismay, and were in a frantic rush. "Come along!" Hermione yelled as she pulled little Hugo along the platform. "Let's not dawdle like we have no place to be."

Ron and Rose were lagging behind, trying to pull her enormous trunks, why she needed to bring _three _he didn't understand.

"But I need this last trunk for all of my books and things!" she'd exclaimed as he was floating them to the car. "I won't be coming home for three months so I'll need books to occupy my time!"

"Trust me, you'll have plenty of schoolwork," he said. But she insisted on them anyway.

"Come on," Ron said, wishing he could just let his wand do all the work, but with all the muggles he couldn't risk it.

"This is it!" exclaimed Rose as they reached the platform wall. She was already dressed in her robes, even though her father had said they wouldn't be necessary until the end of the train ride. But Hermione had hushed him and let Rose do as she pleased.

Rose ran through the wall first, with her father and the trolley right behind. And when she looked up at the Hogwarts Express it was the best sight she'd ever seen! "Whoa!" she said befuddled. "It's beautiful. Don't you think so dad?"

She turned to see her dad looking at the train, lost in thought. "I've never really noticed," he said.

"But what about the first time you ever saw the train? Didn't you think it was beautiful then?" she said, a little disappointed that he hadn't shared her view.

"Well, I can't really remember the first time I saw it. I grew up coming to Platform 9¾. Because of all my older brothers, you know."

"Right," Rose said staring up at the great train.

"Come on!" she heard her mother yell. "It's almost time to leave."

"Let me look at you," Hermione said taking Rose's face in her hands. "Now, you remember to send us owls every week. I want to hear everything that's going on. I want to hear all about classes and extra curriculars. Okay?"

"Okay," Rose said peering into her mother's misty eyes. It hadn't really sunken in that she was leaving her parents, and now she wished she hadn't yearned for this day to be here so fast.

"Alright," Hermione pulled out a small black carrying purse with drawstrings. "Here are a few galleons so you can buy some sweets, you have your lunch packed, and if you've left anything at home, just send an owl and we'll send it to you."

"I will, thanks mom," Rose hugged her mother, squeezing her tighter than she normally would, and then her father and brother who whispered a small "good luck" in her ear.

She found a compartment with her cousins, Victoire, James, Al, Louis, and Teddy. Dominique, Victoire and Louis's sister, who was just a year older than Rose, was attending her second year at Beauxbatons Academy. Madam Maxime, who was still the headmistress wanted Victoire too of course, but Victoire had chosen to go to Hogwarts with Teddy instead, causing Madam Maxime great pain, so when Dominique came of age, she was sent her acceptance letter of course, and accepted with great exhilaration. For years she had been living in Victoire's shadow, and now she could have her own life.

"Where's everyone else?" Rose asked, referring to the rest of the Weasley clan. George's kids, Fred and Roxanne were missing, Fred was a fifth year, and Roxanne a third year. Percy's kids were also missing; Molly and Lucy would be in their fifth and second years.

"Probably hopping about," Louis said.

"Yeah, that Roxanne is always running around seeing everyone. She's in Gryffindor and apparently everyone wants to be her best friend. Popular!"

"I've seen her play Quidditch," James said. "Brilliant!" He looked at Rose. "Have you ever seen her ride a broom?"

Rose shook her head. It wasn't that they weren't close, it's just that the family was so big and since everyone lived so far away, it was hard to see everyone on a regular basis. Luckily, Rose and her family lived just a few miles from the Burrow so she could see her grandparents regularly. Ron and Hermione didn't allow Rose and Hugo to Apparate with anyone. Hugo got motion sickness very easily, and after Ron Weasley got splinched one time, Hermione took extra precautions when it came to her kids.

After a few moments of silence, Teddy said "Last year," with a sigh. "What will I do without Hogwarts?"

"Come back and visit," Victoire winked.

"Of course," he said smiling.

Rose knew about them. She'd always known that Victoire loved Teddy, more than anything else, ever since they were kids. And one day, she guessed Teddy woke up and saw that Vic wasn't that annoying little girl who would follow him everywhere when they were young.

"I hope I'm put in Gryffindor," Rose said aloud. "So I can be in your house."

"That would be wonderful!" Victoire said. "But any house they put you in will become your family and you'll love it anyway. But I do have to say Gryffindor is the best." She flipped her long blonde mane behind her shoulder and batted her eyes in Teddy's direction, clearly waiting for a rebuttle, and she got it.

"I think you mean, _Hufflepuff_, is the best," he retorted.

"Both of you are ridiculous," Louis spoke up. "Slytherin is where it's at."

The rest of the compartment gave him skeptical looks. "You're mad," Teddy said. "No one except for the Slytherins like Slytherin."

Rose wrinkled her nose. Her father had warned her all about Slytherins, how they'd had their fair share of trouble with them during the school years, especially Draco Malfoy who's son was starting his first year at Hogwarts too. Scorpius, she thought his name was. "Beat him at everything," her father had said. "Everything."

"I don't want to be put into Slytherin," Albus said. But Rose wasn't sure who he was talking to exactly as he was staring out the window. Maybe himself, maybe everyone. But no one said anything and Rose wasn't exactly sure if anyone else heard.

A few hours later, after some entertaining charms from Teddy and a few chocolate frogs and pumpkin pasties later, the train began to slow.

"We have to change!" Victoire exclaimed, before jumping up and heading for the bathroom.

"Women," Teddy said shaking his head and followed her out.

"I hope you get placed into Gryffindor too," James said to both Rose and Albus. "It'll be like all the Weasleys and Potters under one roof!"

"Ahem," Louis cleared his throat. "And Teddy and I are-?"

"You know what I mean," James said.

When the train finally stopped and the students got out, a tall giant stood in front of them.

"All right, firs' years. Follow me!" he rumbled. "'Ello little Potter, little Weasleys," and then he winked.

"Hello Hagrid," they all said before Albus and Rose followed him to the boats.


	3. The Sorting Ceremony

Chapter 3: The Sorting Ceremony

"Good evening," she said. "And welcome to Hogwarts. I am professor Anderson. Soon, you will be going through these doors for dinner, but before you can start you must be sorted into your houses. There are four of them, Gryffindor, Hufflepuff, Ravenclaw, and Slytherin."

"My whole family's been in Slytherin for years," Rose heard a voice behind her. "I know that'll be the house for me." It was young boy by the sound of the voice, but Rose wasn't about to turn around to find out.

The tall, thin, young woman, blonde hair pulled into a bun, turned and escorted the first years through the large double doors and into the Great Hall. Immediately, Rose looked up as Victoire had instructed while they were on the train. It was as if there was no ceiling at all, but rather a large opening so the students could embrace the night sky. Rose smiled to herself, already enraptured at Hogwarts's beauty.

Once they'd stopped at the front, Rose finally noticed the four long tables that extended from the far end of the hall to the front. And the headmistress, McGonagall was sitting in the large chair in the center right in front of them, professors lined up against the wall beside her. Without saying a word, Professor Anderson took a ratty worn hat and placed it on a stool that stood three or four steps above the first years. With great astonishment to the students, it began to sing its song.

"_Oh,you may not think I'm pretty,  
But don't judge on what you see,  
I'll eat myself if you can find__  
A smarter hat than me.  
You can keep your bowlers black,  
Your tops hats sleek and tall,  
For I'm the Hogwarts Sorting Hat  
And I can cap them all.  
There's nothing hidden in your head__  
The Sorting Hat can't see,  
So try me on and I will tell you__  
Where you ought to be.  
Y ou might belong in Gryffindor,  
Where dwell brave of heart,  
Their daring, nerve, and chivalry  
Set Gryffindors apart;  
You might belong in Hufflepuff,  
Where they are just and loyal,  
Those patient Hufflepuffs are true  
And unafraid of toil;  
Or yet wise old Ravenclaw,  
If you've a ready mind,__  
Where those of wit and learning,  
Will always find their kind;  
Or perhaps in Slytherin  
You'll make your real friends,  
Those cunning folk use any means  
To achive their ends.  
So put me on! Don't be afraid!  
And you won't get in a flap!  
You're safe in my hands(though I have none)  
For I'm a Thinking Cap!"_

When it was done, the first years all clapped and Professor Anderson took it in her hands again. Then, a large roll of parchment floated from the table behind her to her side and she read the first name, "Kevin Ackerman."

A tall, husky boy with sandy colored wavy hair ascended the steps to the stool and sat down. Once the sorting hat was on his head it almost immediately yelled,"HUFFLEPUFF!" The table on the farthest end of the Great Hall cheered and clapped and one Hufflepuff boy even stood up to shake Kevin's hand.

"Biddy Buncheon!"

Biddy, a small girl with short brown hair pulled into tiny pigtails marched up the stairs and sat comfortably on the stool.

"Weird one, that girl," the same voice from the corridor said behind her. "I heard her talking about things outside I'd never heard of. I think she's muggle-born."

"RAVENCLAW!" the sorting hat yelled. And the Ravenclaw table went crazy, yelling and clapping and carrying on.

The next three people in a row were all sorted into Gryffindor, Karen Cook, Hannah Crow, and Henry Custer.

"Marius Davenport!"

A small boy with dark hair, almost black stepped up and stood on the stool. The hat took a few seconds to make up its mind, but finally yelled out "RAVENCLAW!"

The next few people went by in a blur as Rose thought about how badly she wanted to be placed into Gryffindor. Regan Eggers was a Hufflepuff, Nancy Elder was the first Slytherin. And she looked the part too with her sneaky green eyes, upturned nose, and sly little smile. Wallace Finnigan was deemed a Gryffindor. Lee Forrest was a Syltherin.

"Gregory Goyle," at the call of this name a few students started whispering. Everyone knew that the Goyle's were long-time supporters of Voldemort and were fighting on his side during the Battle of Hogwarts. Most wizarding families hadn't forgiven past Death Eaters. The only family that received any sympathy at all was the Malfoys.

A tall brawny boy stepped up to the hat with confidence. Obviously dealing with whispers and sneers his whole life. The cap sat on his head for barely a second before yelling, "SLYTHERIN!"

A few more names were called Amelia Guest was put in Ravenclaw, Abby Hanker in Hufflepuff, George Isaac was put into Gryffindor, and the farther the names went the more muffled Professor Anderson's voice was to Rose. She was concentrating so hard on her thoughts until she heard a name she recognized, "Scorpius Malfoy!"

Rose felt movement behind her and she turned to see the boy who'd been standing behind her all along had been none other than her father's worst enemy's son. Rose had seen pictures of Draco Malfoy in the new _Hogwarts: A History_ book in the Battle of Hogwarts chapter. And Scorpius was the spitting image of his father. Same white-blonde hair, piercing gray eyes and sly facial expression. Rose's breath caught in her chest. He made her nervous already.

"SLYTHERIN!"

Rose followed Scorpius Malfoy with her eyes all the way to the Slytherin table where they settled, not paying attention to the other names until she heard Anderson cry out.

"Albus Potter!" Rose's head snapped back to the stool and as Albus ascended the steps she could tell he was nervous. He was clenching his fists tightly and then suddenly realizing it let them drop and wiped the sweat onto his robes.

As Rose watched the sorting hat fall onto his head it seemed like hours before it finally yelled out, "GRYFFINDOR!"

The Gryffindor table erupted in fits of cheer and excitement. Al looked relieved and Rose caught herself joining along in the clapping.

Student after student climbed the few stairs and unmasked their future families at school and Rose waited patiently. Finally when her name was called, with her stomach in knots she climbed the steps and sat on the stool.

The hat was placed on her head and a tiny whisper came into her ears. "Oh, another Weasley!" it exclaimed. "Yes, yes, quite a fine brain, quite a fine brain indeed. You will prove yourself well in RAVENCLAW!" The last word was yelled loud enough for the whole Hall to hear and the Ravenclaw table burst into applause. Rose smiled unknowingly. All thoughts of Gryffindor faded away and she was just relieved she'd been placed and that it wasn't Slytherin.

"Welcome!" an older, tall Ravenclaw girl said as she stood to give Rose a friendly hug. She was in her sixth year, a prefect, and she had long black hair that cascaded past her shoulders and down her back. Her skin was olive colored and her eyes deep honey. Rose wondered if she'd ever seen a girl prettier. Even Fleur and Victoire's looks could have paled in comparison. "I'm Maria Langley."

Sometime in between Rose being placed and soaking in the Ravenclaw welcomes, the last three students were called and placed.

"Welcome to a new school year at Hogwarts!" McGonagall said standing up. "I'm sure we have a fine year ahead of us. Now, let our feast begin!"

The large gold serving plates along the tables suddenly weren't empty anymore. Every gold serving plate had mounds and mounds of food. Every cup had a beverage and immediately the Great Hall dug into their dinner.

"Mum says that first years can't ever join the Quidditch team," Marius Davenport said. "But I'm sure once they see what I can do on a broom; they'll put me on the team for sure."

Maria nudged Rose's arm with her elbow and nodded toward Marius rolling her eyes. Rose smiled. Surely Maria knew that would never happen.

"So," a fifth year boy said, Rose remembered hearing Smith, but couldn't remember his first name, "does anyone know who's teaching Care of Magical Creatures this year? I heard Professor Grubbly Plank is retired."

"Well it could be Professor Hagrid," Maria replied. "But he has a lot to deal with now that the dragon law has been lifted. Apparently, two more dragons were donated to the school today, but you didn't hear it from me."

"Dragons?" Rose asked. "At Hogwarts?"

"Yes," Maria said. "You didn't hear about the law being abolished? Some wizard in Scotland found a way to train dragons, and he's been doing it for years without the Ministry's knowledge. Once he'd perfected the training, he showed the ministry that dragons can be useful. And so now certain breeds are legal to buy and sell, if the buyer had a license to train them. And apparently Hagrid went out the day of and got his license. He's been training three for a few months. And I suppose two more dragons were dropped off today. There's no way he could be having classes _and_ training all those dragons."

Rose's eyes widened. Dragons at Hogwarts? This would make for an interesting year.

When dessert had finished, and the dishes disappeared from the table, Professor McGonagall stood and cleared her throat for everyone's attention.

"Before you're off to your dormitories, there are a few things to be addressed. Due to recent adjustments, the grounds are off limits to students after dark, no exceptions. Also note that Mr. Filch, our caretaker has asked me to remind you Sir Cadogan, who resides in the portrait on the seventh floor, has been instructed that he is to go on no more _expeditions_." She looked sternly in the direction of the Gryffindor table where James, Rose's cousin, sat with his two friends, two boys who looked about the same age, one with shaggy brown hair, and the other a deep tan colored hair. They were snickering at each other, no doubt their idea to send Sir Cadogan through the castle to give himself a fit.

"He's mad," Rose's father would say. "One year, he guarded our entryway to the Gryffindor common room and would change the password without telling anyone what it was! It took us hours to get into our dormitory."

"Now, off to bed, all of you." McGonagall said. The head boy and girl of each table stood up and started out the doors for the first years to follow.

"Ravenclaws, follow us!" the two heads for Ravenclaw house yelled. The boy was Justin Brand and the girl Marin Foster. Through the castle the first years walked, up a tall spiral staircase, up to the fifth floor and stopped at a large door with no doorknob, but just a bronze knocker in the shape of an eagle.

"I have holes all over, but still hold water," the eagle asked boldly and loudly.

"A sponge," Biddy Buncheon said, more to herself than everyone else, but the eagle head bowed and the door swung open allowing everyone to pass.

"Pay close attention, Ravenclaws," Marin said. "If you get the riddles wrong, you have to wait until someone comes along who gets it right."

"I hope I'm never in a hurry," said Marius who was right behind Rose and Biddy, talking to the boy beside him.

"Riddles instead of passwords!" Rose exclaimed, "How brilliant!"

"Alright, girls' rooms are up the stairs to the right, and boys to the left," Justin said. "All of your things have been brought up and set on your beds. First years through fourth years are not to be out of the common room after 8'oclock, fifth to seventh years at 9'oclock. If students are found wandering the corridors after these hours prefects have the right to send these students to the head of house. Our head of house is Professor Flitwick who is also the Charms professor. Head boy or head girl has the right to take away house points and then send students to the head of house and the head of house has the right to take away points and assign detention or other disciplinary actions. Bottom line, don't break rules." He stood staring awkwardly at the first years for a few moments before dismissing them to their rooms.

Rose climbed to the top of the right staircase with Biddy at her side. Biddy was going on about how she will miss her sister's birthday party this year because of school. And how her father wouldn't have her to help him in the family store after school anymore until winter break. Biddy's parents were muggles, and she had a younger sister, 8 years old. Her father owned a hardware store and she would walk from school to help clean and stock and run the cash register. Thankfully, Rose knew all about these things because her mother was muggle-born and insisted that they visited her parents frequently so that Rose and Hugo and even Ron could be educated on muggle things. Grandpa Arthur always tried to come along as well, and usually did, always fascinated by muggles. He'd met Rose's grandparents before when her parents were younger and then again at their wedding, but over the years, he would just ask them question after question, and they to him in return.

After the day, Rose was exhausted and after she'd unpacked and set her books comfortably under her nightstand, under her bed, and on the shelf above her bed, anywhere they would fit, actually, she climbed under the covers and fell fast asleep.


	4. The Rivalry Begins

Chapter 4: The Rivalry Begins

The first week of classes flew by in a blur. Rose had Transfiguration, and found that Professor Anderson was her favorite teacher by far. Potions with Professor Higgins could have been better, but on the first day, when she raised her hand multiple times to answer he'd answered the questions himself and then asked her if she had a cramp. Her face went beet red and most of the other students stared and sometimes snickered at her.

Rose was surprised, but nonetheless pleased to find that most if not all Ravenclaws in her classes usually volunteered to read from the book or raised their hands to answer questions. When Rose's mother would talk about school, she was the only one in the class who ever knew any of the answers right away. Rose was pleased to see that she wasn't making a spectacle of herself, except maybe in Potions class.

Charms turned out to be her favorite class and she'd already impressed Professor Flitwick with her "swish and flick" motion. She was pleased to see Albus come in at the last minute on the first day of Charms class. Apparently he'd gotten lost in the corridors, and luckily found the seat next to Rose. Biddy, Rose's new friend and one of her roommates sat on the other side and Rose made it a point to introduce them while they were doing their independent lesson.

"Pleased to meet you, Albus," Biddy said. She was always so formal about things.

"You too," Al said, a little shier than usual.

"How's life in Gryffindor," Rose asked. She was happy in Ravenclaw and making many friends, but it was a little unsettling that most of her family was placed in Gryffindor; James, Albus, Roxanne, Fred, and Victoire (Molly and Lucy were both Hufflepuffs with Teddy).

"It's great!" Al perked up. "Some of the guys are really cool. They're sitting over there," Al pointed across the room at three first year boys. They were waving their wands around like dopes and two were pretending to sword fight with them.

"They look interesting," Rose said trying to disguise the contempt in her voice.

"Don't judge," Albus said. "They're hilarious."

"Remember," Flitwick called from the front of the room, particularly to the students who were doing more talking instead of practicing. "Swish and flick."

"Your cousin seems nice," Biddy had said on the way from Charms to lunch. They were walking back the courtyard where two Slytherin boys were taunting a tiny Hufflepuff girl. Rose stopped and watched for a few seconds. The boys were hiding behind a tree and every time she would try to read a page in her book they'd bewitch it to switch pages. At first the tiny girl didn't know where it was coming from, but she figured it out soon enough that it was them.

Rose watched the little girl, a little shorter than Rose herself, with blonde hair pulled back, march over to the boys and point her wand at them. She recognized the one boy as none other than Scorpius Malfoy, and the other, she thought must have been Gregory Goyle II. The girl started yelling, "If you ever try to bewitch anything I own again," the two boys' faces fell, "then you'll be on the receiving end of my jelly-legs jinx. You won't be able to walk for hours!"

The two boys, startled by her sudden outburst, probably weren't expecting a rebuttal, picked up their things and ran past Rose and Biddy towards the great hall. The small girl straightened her Hufflepuff tie and picked up her books walking head held high towards the girls. "That was brilliant!" Biddy practically yelled. "Can you really do a jelly-legs jinx?"

"No," the girl laughed, "but they don't know that!" The three girls started laughing. "I don't think they'll be bothering me anymore. Besides, my brother will take care of them."

Walking to the Great Hall, they'd found out her name was Abby Hanker, her brother, Bradley Hanker was in Gryffindor. They were half-blood. Their mother was a witch and their father a muggle. Their parents were divorced though, and their step-mother had no idea witches and wizards existed.

"It's very weird at dad's house," Abby said. "We have to constantly hide the fact that we are who we are." Rose and Biddy nodded, wide-eyed.

"I completely understand," Biddy said. "My parents told me I shouldn't tell any of my muggle friends what I am. But I think it's lying and I'm not too sure how I feel about it."

All the way to dinner, the three girls chatted and laughed, and then Rose and Biddy bid farewell to Abby as she took her place at the Hufflepuff table and they at the Ravenclaw table.

Twice during dinner, Rose looked up and met Scorpius Malfoy's stare. He winked the first time and the second just smiled. Rose looked down after both encounters. Why did he unhinge her so?

The weekend was here and at breakfast Saturday morning the owls starting flying in with gifts and letters from parents and grandparents. Biddy was sent a necklace from her parents with a heart shaped pendant and Rose watched all of the first year girls giggle with glee over its gold shine. Lindsey Young, who had been sorted just before Rose was admiring the pendant and going on and on about how her mother's jewelry charm could outshine the best muggle polish anyday. "My father used to work in a jewelry shop, he's a muggle, by the way, and my mum's charm beat out his nasty smelling polish to get that shine. Of course, my father said it wasn't fair that my mother got to use magic, but she just looked at him and said, 'Whatever gets it done'!" Lindsey was a fast-talking, _ever_-talking girl. Rose didn't think that she ever shut her mouth.

"The first Quidditch game of the season starts today, Slytherin versus Hufflepuff," Maria said. "Starting a bit earlier than usual for us, but I don't care. I hope to be a professional Quidditch player when I leave Hogwarts."

"Really?" Rose asked. "That's wonderful!" Rose had never known anyone who wanted to do Quidditch professionally. "Which team?"

"I'm hoping to join the Irish national team, but seeing as I'm not Irish that could be a problem."

"Do you have to be Irish?"

"I'm not sure, but it would suck if I did!" Maria laughed. "Oh! Quinton! Wait for me!" And with that she ran off behind a seventh year Ravenclaw boy, Quinton Meyers.

"I heard that Maria's one of the best keepers Ravenclaw's ever had. Last year she only let four balls get by her, in the whole season!" Biddy said.

Now _that_ was something. Rose looked up and locked eyes with Scorpius Malfoy. But this time she didn't look away. She was caught. He was staring at her and she at him.

"Rose!" Biddy called in a sing-songy voice. She was half-way to the door by now. "Come on!"

The Quidditch stands were filled when Biddy and Rose arrived. They had to squeeze behind and around people before they took their places with the rest of the Ravenclaws.

The players were all circled around Madam Hooch's broom, suspended about twelve feet in the air as she held the Quaffle under her arm and the whistle in her hand. "Alright," she said, "first game of the season and I want a nice _clean_ game. No funny business." She looked straight at the Slytherin team and the two beaters high fived each other when she looked down. The whistle blew and they were off.

The announcer came over the loudspeaker to commentate the match. "And there they go!" they yelled.

"Who's commentating?" Rose asked Biddy.

"That's Arnold Robbins," Biddy replied. "He's in Gryffindor I think, third year, maybe?"

"-and that's ten points to Slytherin!"

A slytherin chaser had the Quaffle now and in an attempt to throw it to their partner, a Hufflepuff chaser got the ball. After she'd intercepted she flew towards the rings too busy gloating and laughing to see the Slytherin beaters. One beater plunged his beater against the bludger and it went sailing her way. She was knocked off of her broom, where she fell about three stories. All of this happened in merely seconds, but to the people in the stands it felt like hours, like it had happened in slow motion.

"Jacqueline Hennesey, Hufflepuff's prime chaser has been knocked off of her broom my Slytherin beater Neil Flint."

By this time, Madam Hooch had blown her whistle and was now off her broom, examining Jacqueline's injury. Three other professors including Anderson, McGonagall, and Higgins were at the bottom as well. Soon she was escorted off the field and a replacement was brought in. A girl much smaller than Jacqueline, and looking rather nervous.

"Jacqueline has been escorted to the hospital wing, and stepping in for her will be Angela Bassett, playing her first Quidditch game ever!"

From the stands, Rose could see Angela look up at the announcer podium with an exasperated look.

"I don't understand," Biddy said. "The game is still on."

"Those are the rules," Rose said. She knew a lot about Quidditch, because she was her father's daughter. "Game goes until the seeker catches the snitch. No exceptions."

"But what if they don't catch it for days?" Biddy asked.

"Then they send in replacements, so the players can get some sleep, but the game continues. I've heard the longest lasting game was three months."

"Wow!" Biddy cried. "Interesting game, Quidditch."

At the end of the day, the game had lasted four hours because the snitch was hovering over the Forbidden Forest. Slytherin won by a hundred and seventy points and just as Rose and Biddy were leaving the stands, Rose heard none other than Malfoy gloating.

"Did you see that Ravenclaws?" he said as the girls walked by. They tried to ignore him, but he stood in front of them blocking the exit. "Slytherin's the best team at this school, so don't get your hopes up next week when they play your house."

"Could you please move, we're trying to leave?" Rose asked as nicely as she could.

"Kill them with kindness," her mother always said.

Malfoy looked put off, surprised even. But he moved out of the way and as soon as they'd walked past Rose heard him say to his friends, "Funny sort of girl, isn't she?"

Rose smiled. _Well_, she thought, _it could have been worse._

The second week of school, teachers started upping the work and homework. She found herself spending two hours in the library every night. Well, that was her usual way anyway. Most of the Gryffindors were gone after dinner, but the Ravenclaws always occupied the library. The common room was usually quiet because of people studying, and she'd heard more than one fifth year complain about the O.W.L.s on more than one occasion.

In Defense Against the Dark Arts class, Professor Luck (ironic sort of name for a Defense Against the Dark Arts teacher, Rose thought) had everyone choose a partner. "Make sure it is someone _not_ from your own house!" he cried.

Well, the Ravenclaws had the class with Slytherins so most students were reluctant to move from their seats. But after some pushing, Luck got them up and settled. Rose was the last Ravenclaw to be paired and to her luck (no pun intended) she was paired with Scorpius Malfoy.

They were to be looking up four different cures for Flesh-Eating Slug bites in their textbooks and so far Rose was doing all the work. She'd found two of the answers without any help. "Are you just going to sit there twiddling your thumbs?" she asked annoyed.

"No," Scorpius smiled. "In a few seconds, I was thinking about stretching like this," he stretched and yawned while Rose sat there with a straight face and no amusement, "and then I thought I'd charm my friend's book to dance. Want to see?" Scorpius raised his wand, but Rose grabbed it.

"No I do not!" she practically yelled. Luckily no one noticed. "You have done _nothing_ and I don't think it's fair that I'm doing all of the work and you'll get half of the credit."

Scorpius took back his wand and starting spinning it around his fingers like a baton. "So what," he said. "You're a Ravenclaw."

"Meaning," Rose said.

"Meaning you'll do the work because you don't want bad marks. Am I right?" His smile was sly and smart. But he was right. Rose's nostrils flared. She wouldn't, _couldn't_, sacrifice her good grades for justice. If Malfoy got the grade he deserved, then she could get a grade she _didn't. _She wished she could prove him wrong and refuse, but she couldn't.

He smiled again, knowing he'd won. And Rose turned back to the book in a worse mood than before.


	5. Dragon Lessons

**AUTHOR'S NOTE: Hey everyone! Sorry it's been a few days since I posted. I started back to work for the summer and got so busy, plus a little bit of writer's block, but I'm back and happy to say that most of the first "year" is finished plotting out. Plus I have decided the premise for most of the seventh year, it's just the years in between that need some ideas. So, here's where I open the floor to you. If you have any ideas of anything that could happen, quotes the characters could say, etc, etc, then please feel free to put them in the comments section. I would love to read through and it might help me get new ideas. I tend to not read other fan-fictions about the characters I write about because I never want to "step on any toes" and steal ideas, so by not reading other fan-fics, I know my fan-fics are 100% my own... that is, until I get comments from you (: haha. **

**So please enjoy chapter 5 and let me know how I'm doing, and please write those ideas in the comments. 'Kay bye (: **

Chapter 5: Dragon Lessons

By October, Rose had done her very best to avoid Malfoy at all costs. She'd thrown herself into school work, writing home to mum and dad, and cheering for the Ravenclaw Quidditch team. So far, Ravenclaw had won once against Slytherin, and twice against Hufflepuff (their biggest rivals).

The day of Halloween was a Friday and instead of having Defense Against the Dark Arts inside the classroom, they were to go outside and mix with the third year Care of Magical Creatures class.

"Alright firs' years, mix in with the rest of 'em," Hagrid said as they all came down the hill from the castle to his hut. He had his sweater sleeves rolled up to his elbows and Rose noticed two large gash cuts across his left arm.

"Now," Professor Luck said. "Can anyone tell me how many breeds of dragons there are?"

Rose's hand shot up. She'd just studied this last night in _Magical Creatures and Where to Find Them_.

"Ah, yes Miss Weasley?"

"There are only twelve known dragon species, but wizards are sure that there are more that haven't been discovered yet."

"There are more that haven't been discovered yet," Rose heard Malfoy mock behind her. She turned around to give him a glare and his mouth twisted up into that sly smile that she hated so much.

"Well done Miss Weasley, ten points to Ravenclaw! As Miss Weasley said, there are only twelve species, but wizards are positive that more exist in the world, they just have not been identified yet. Now can anyone tell me according to new wizard law which species of dragons are licensed to buy and sell? Yes Mister Malfoy?"

Rose turned to see Scorpius pulling down his hand. "Only five, Professor." He looked at her and smiled. Disturbed, Rose turned back around. She knew that, why didn't she raise her hand?

"Yes, yes, only five. Ten points to Slytherin. Now, Hogwarts is very fortunate, thanks to certified trainer Hagrid here, to have acquired one of each of these five dragons. And today, Professor McGonagall has allowed us to admire these beings up close. Hagrid, whenever you're ready."

"Alrigh'," Hagrid said. He stepped up in front of everyone. Rose giggled a little at the sight of Hagrid standing next to Professor Luck. Hagrid was half giant and nearly twice as tall as Professor Luck, since Luck was only about five foot five tall, boney, and had absolutely no hair on his head, which he tried to cover up with a tall pointed haat. "Now you need ter step back 'cause these dragon er pretty feisty. An' ye best be havin' yer wands out. Jus' in case." All of the students took out their wands, but it wasn't as if Rose and the other first years knew too many ways to defend themselves against a fully grown dragon if they had to.

Hagrid whistled and the students felt the ground rumble beneath them. From the forbidden forest, a great dragon emerged, that had to have been 30 feet long. It was beautiful, well as beautiful as a dragon could be, with a pearly body and glittering gray eyes. A few of the students gasped or "oohed" and "ahhed".

"Now that righ' there," Hagrid said, "is the Antipodean Opaleye." He waved his hand over his head and the dragon came closer. "If yer squimish ye best be lookin' 'way now." A few students looked away, heaing Hagrid's warning, but most, including Rose, kept their eyes glued to the great Dragon. It walked into the openness, and Rose realized it was chained to something in the forest that wasn't visible to them, probably a tree. In the opening of the meadow was a herd of sheep.

"It's not going to-to eat them is it?" a third year girl asked.

"Yeah she is," Hagrid replied.

"Brilliant!" Malfoy exclaimed behind them. And all of the students watched the dragon engulf three sheep.

"That's barbaric," the same third year girl said.

"That's nature," Malfoy replied.

The rest of the lesson was spent on how to strategically escape a dragon if ever confronted by one.

"It's all about different everyday useful spells. Transfiguration for example," Professor Luck said. "Can any third years transfigure this rock right here into an animal, any animal?"

A third year boy stepped up and transfigured the rock into a gray cat.

"Wonderful!" Luck yelled. "Now, a more experienced witch or wizard could transfigure this into a larger animal, such as a sheep or a cow or a dog to distract the dragon, allowing him or her to get away."

Rose soaked all of the information in, animals, soothing music, storm clouds, etc, etc. She was fascinated by all of it.

"It was brilliant!" Rose told Biddy later on during dinner. Biddy had Astronomy at the same time Rose had Defense Against the Dark Arts, and Defense Against the Dark Arts when Rose had Astronomy. They were the only two classes the girls didn't have together.

"Wow!" Biddy cried. "Real life dragons! And I get to see them tomorrow!"

"Yeah," Malfoy said coming up behind, "Real life dragons! Hope you weren't too scared Weasley. Saw you trembling a little bit."

"I was fine, Malfoy," Rose retorted, unamused.

"Didn't look that way to us," Goyle chimed in.

"You weren't even there," Rose said. Goyle shut his mouth immediately.

"Well, I look forward to seeing you again on Wednesday Miss Weasley," Malfoy said, he bowed his head mockingly and walked away. Rose's nostrils were flaring and her face flushed.

"What a jerk," Biddy said before digging into her chocolate pudding.

On the way back to the common room, Rose noticed that the bench beside the Black Lake looked rather inviting. "You head up," Rose told Biddy and Selma Blythe, a second year Ravenclaw girl. "I'll be up later."

"Remember curfew," Biddy said.

"I will," Rose replied. "Just want a quiet place to study, that's all."

Biddy and Selma hurried up the spiral staircase and Rose made her way back down and out of the castle down to the Black Lake. She kicked off her shoes and pulled off her socks, dipping the tip of her toes into the water. It was freezing and she jumped back and settled herself down on the bench.

It wasn't too long before she had trouble reading and realized it was because the sun was sinking lower and lower. Oh no! How long had she been out of the castle? What time was it, and had she been out past curfew? She was sure she had and quickly pulled on her socks and shoes and readied herself to run back to the castle. But she couldn't. As soon as she turned to head back she was frozen, her legs unwilling to move. Standing before her was the largest dragons she'd ever seen. It was certainly much larger than any dragon they'd seen today in Defense Against the Dark Arts class, and it was staring it's two large _red_ eyes right at her. It was a Hungarian Horntail, she knew it. Uncle Charlie worked with them in Romania many years ago before he transferred to Australia. But she knew that tail anywhere and they were by far the nastiest and most dangerous dragons alive. Slowly, it picked up it's large feet and came in her direction, roaring and growling (did dragons growl?) at her and sending flames into the sky.

Immediately and subconsciously, because Rose definitely wasn't thinking, she ran for it, under the belly of the beast and hoping to outrun (or outsmart) the dragon until she was inside the castle. But would it harm the castle to try to get to her? Would she even make it to the castle. She tried not to think about that. She tried not to think at all, except to run. Use your wand, she thought. But she didn't know any spells, no useful ones anyway. Think. THINK.

"Immobulus!" A voice called behind her, and she turned to see Malfoy pointing his wand up and the coming dragon. The spell must not have been strong enough for the dragon or Malfoy missed, because the next moment Malfoy was running after her screaming, "RUN!" Together he and Rose ran for the castle. The castle seemed so far away and at points she'd hear and see Malfoy from the corner of her eyes turn around and yell some kind of spell. "What can I use to distract it?"

"I don't know!" Rose shouted back. "Some kind of animal!"

Malfoy turned around one last time and shouted "Oppugno!" very loudly and from his wand, a flock of birds appeared heading straight for the beast behind them. They pecked at his scales and flew around his body, he charged them now instead of the two first years.

When Rose and Scorpius reached the inside of the castle, no one was to be seen. Rose looked down and realized they'd been running, hands held the whole time. Awkwardly, she let go and Scorpius groaned mockingly. "Geez, Weasley," he said. "You didn't have to go and set that dragon on yourself. If you wanted to hold my hand all you had to do was ask," he looked up at her smiling. Rose caught herself smiling back, finally realizing that he just wanted to get a rise out of her.

"Thank you," she said. "Really."

"For what?" he probably didn't want to draw attention to himself.

"I don't know what would have happened if you hadn't been there." Then something struck her. "Why were you out there exactly?"

"You ask too many questions, Weasley." He starting heading toward the stairs to the dungeons. But just before he started down them, he turned around. "You're welcome," he said.


	6. Unlikely Friends

Chapter 6: Unlikely Friends

The next day in History of Magic class was a little awkward for Rose. While walking down the corridor to Professor Binn's class, she didn't know what to expect. Were she and Scorpius friends now? Was that a fluke accident and she'll never again know his kindness? She had no idea.

"Alright first years," Binns said upon the beginning of class. "I want you to couple up into partners again. We're a little behind schedule, but I think we can catch up before Christmas break begins. Go on now."

Rose was concentration so hard on her thoughts that she didn't even see Scorpius come up and sit beside her. "Hey partner," he said. "I've got something for you." Rose was still halfway in a trance, but she looked down to see Scorpius holding a small bird he'd made out of paper. It was enchanted and flapping its wings. It rose up to meet her and nestled onto her shoulder where it remained still. Rose smiled. She reached up and gently pulled the bird off of her shoulder, holding it in her palm.

"It's beautiful," she said. A few seconds went by of her just studying it. She wondered if he would teach her how to make one for her mother. "Do your friends know?" she asked looking up.

Scorpius furrowed his brow, confused. "Do my friends know what?"

"That you have a sweet side?" Rose smiled.

"No," he replied. "And don't tell them. I have a reputation to protect." He opened his textbook, the first time she'd seen all year and turned to the page Professor Binns had instructed.

Rose studied this boy who sat beside her. Suddenly, his smile didn't seem so sly, and his attitude didn't seem so large. He was just a normal wizard who wanted to learn as much as he could. Perhaps, Rose thought, she'd judged him too harshly.

"Our exam on dragons is next week in Defense Against the dark Arts," Scorpius said.

"Yes."

"Well, I just thought since you and I have both had our fair share of dragons, why don't we study together?" Rose looked over at him.

"Sure," she replied before going back to her feather.

At lunch in the Great Hall, an owl came from her mother saying that this Christmas was to be spent with the whole Weasley family on the beach at Shell Cottage where Bill, Fleur, and the kids lived. All of her cousins would be under one roof (with the help of the extension spell of course). The cottage was big, but not _that_ big! Her mother also included some pumpkin pasties and a copy of _Sonnets of a Sorcerer_. It originally was a cursed book that made any witch or wizard that read it speak in limericks for the rest of their life, but when Rose's grandpa Arthur confiscated it and found a way to get rid of the enchantment, he read it himself, testing it out to be sure (and to grandma Molly's delight, he didn't have to speak in limericks). Since then, her mother read many sonnets to her before bedtime, and then when Rose was old enough read them herself.

"Thought you'd enjoy this in your spare time," her mother wrote.

"That isn't _Sonnets of a Sorcerer_ is it?" Maria asked. Her long black hair was pulled back into a braid today, which hung loosely over her shoulder and down her torso. "I thought it was cursed."

Rose smiled. Then, she opened the book and began to read aloud.

"No, stop!" Maria yelled. Clearly she was nervous.

"Relax," Rose said, smiling. "My grandfather took off the curse that was put on it years ago. It's perfectly safe to read. I've been reading this all my life. Go ahead. Try it." Handing the book to Maria, she suddenly looked at the book in Rose's hand as the most dangerous weapon on earth.

Slowly, she took the book and opened to a random page.

"_Woe to me my love is gone/neither sickness or burden taken/but spells or enchantments I have none/thy kiss eternally shaken/Woe to me my love is gone/heart of hearts undone again/magically torn she left all alone/against my judgment in pain_." Maria looked up. "I don't understand it."

"He was a wizard," Rose began. "And his lover was a muggle woman. And he loved her dearly. But when she found out he was a wizard she didn't like it. So she left him."

"Wow. That's some poem."

"They're all pretty much like that," Rose said taking back her book. "He was a heartbroken fool. That's what my mother says."

"Heartbroken old fool," Scorpius said behind her. Rose turned to see him standing with Goyle right beside him.

"Get out of here Malfoy," Biddy said from her seat beside Rose. "No one invited you."

"Of course they did," Scorpius said. From behind his back he produced a parchment that read, "_Dear Scorpius, you've cordially been invited to the Ravenclaw table, your friend Scorpius_."

"You see?" he said. "I've invited myself."

Marius, from two seats down made a face, and Biddy "hmmpffed" before turning back to lunch.

"Some book," Scorpius said to Rose. "Maybe you'll let me borrow it sometime?"

"Only when I figure out how to curse it back," Rose said joking. "It would be funny, I think, to hear you speak in limericks. How fun classes would be." A few Ravenclaws snickered and giggled, thinking that Rose's joke was an insult. But Scorpius knew better.

"I'll look forward to it," and with a wink, he and Goyle walked away.

The next few weeks went by slowly. With Rose only thinking of Christmas with the Weaselys, her end of first semester studies slipped, but only a little.

"What's eating you?" Scorpius said one night in the library where they were studying. They managed to land a two seater table in the very back right corner of the library where hardly anyone ever went, not even the librarian.

"Nothing," Rose replied. "I just have my head in the clouds." She then returned to studying the Warlocks Convention of 1709.

For three weeks Rose and Scorpius did this. Studied together, partnered together in History of Magic, heckled each other at meals, snickered at each other in the corridors and passed notes in Defense Against the Dark Arts without the notice of other students.

Harvest Festival dinner was the most radiant dinner Rose had ever beheld. Her family wasn't _poor_ per se, and they weren't _rich_ either, but they'd never had such a meal as this. She was sure after three helpings of everything that she would swell like a balloon and then fizz and burst followed by flying around the room for five minutes before settling on the floor where someone would step on her and kick her to the side. She felt so rotten as the climbed the steps, she thought she would fall over and die there in the corridor.

"Pssst," came a whisper from the corner. "Rose." Albus was in the shadows bidding her.

"Al?" she walked over nonchalantly, but he grabbed her hand and ducked her down behind a statue of the one-eyed witch.

"Look," he said presenting a beautiful wizard's cloak.

"It's beautiful," she said. "Did grandmum make it?" Rose touched the material and it was softer than any other she'd ever felt.

"No, grandmum didn't make it," Albus said, annoyed. "This is _the_ cloak. My father's cloak. He sent it to me with this letter attached.

_Albus,_

_On my first year at Hogwarts, Albus Dumbledore presented me with this cloak. It was my fathers who left it in his possession before he died. Dumbledore saw fit that I received it and now I'm presenting it back to another Albus. I will tell you the same thing he told me. Use it well._

_Love, Dad_

"Use it well?" Rose asked. "What does he mean 'use it well'?"

"I don't know," Al said, "but I'm going to find out!" Immediately he covered himself and Rose and they walked out into the corridor. They walked past many a student who didn't see them, didn't notice they were there. "This is brilliant!" Albus whispered excitedly. "We could do anything to them and they'll never know it was us! Got any enemies?"

Rose laughed to humor Albus, but she wasn't prepared for what he said next.

"I know!" he cried. "That Malfoy boy! He's a foul git isn't he? Let's jinx him!"

"No!" Rose cried unwillingly. She cupped her hand over her mouth at the same time Professor McGonagall was walking about the corridor. She looked in the direction of the hidden students but passed them by, eyebrow raised, but leaving them be.

"Why not?" Albus whispered as they decended the stairs to the dungeon. "Serves him right!"

"No," Rose said. "No matter what he's done to me I will not be a part of this. And without warning she threw the cloak from over her and found herself alone in the corridor. "Now, I don't know where you are, Albus Severus, but I know you're listening. Leave him alone, I say. He is none of our concern."

"If you won't help me," came Albus's voice from in front of her, "then that's your decision, but you can't stop me from messing around." And with that, Rose heard his footsteps soften as he ran down the steps.

She crossed her arms and pouted for a moment, then realized it was no fun without someone to see. So she turned back around and headed for the common room.

The next day in History of Magic, Rose sat in her usual seat, on the opposite side that Malfoy sat on. He looked alright, unscathed. Perhaps Albus never made it to the Slytherin common room. Maybe he was caught by a prefect, or a head of house, or perhaps McGonagall herself. Serves him right, sneaking off with the invisibility cloak to curse her friend… well, of course, he didn't know Scorpius was a friend. Was he a friend?

"Hey Weasley!" Scorpius said running up behind her on the way to lunch. Biddy had gone up to take a nap because she had a headache, and Abby from Hufflepuff had been sitting in the Great Hall waiting for lunch for an hour seeing that Professor Flitwick canceled his Charms class for Hufflepuff and Slytherin seeing as he'd contracted the flu after eating a large bowl of sweets, no doubt they were from Weasley's joke shop, and was spending the day in the hospital wing with Madam Pomfrey. Some Slytherin probably forgot to write the paper due for _Wingardium Leviosa_ and needed an extra day. No matter, Rose would reap the benefits later during the day.

"Malfoy," Rose said stopping in front of a large stained glass window.

"Seems we had a visitor last night in our common room. Does this look familiar to you?" He presented a black sock with red and gold stripes around the top.

"So you caught him," Rose said.

"Just barely. His cloak slipped as he was pulling out his wand and I caught a view of his profile. I must have yelled something because the next thing I know Goyle's tackling him to the ground. Couldn't see him of course. I don't think it occurred to him to grab the cloak off of him. Poor fool. But this was lying on the floor after the double doors opened and I assumed he got out." Malfoy dropped the sock in Rose's hand.

"Sorry about that," Rose said. "He just got the cloak and was so excited to hex someone. I think he thought he was doing me a favor by going after you."

"Well, next time he's going to sneak in, give me a heads up first, so I'm not blind-sided."

"I'm so sorry, Scorpius, I told him not to. I'll talk to him."

Scorpius smiled. "You like me."

Rose's head snapped up. "What?" she immediately needed to defend herself.

"You don't hate me at all, do you?"

Huh? What was he getting at? "N-no," she replied.

"Thought so. Studying tonight? Same place, same time?"

"Sure."


	7. Christmas Letters

Chapter 7: Christmas Letters

_Dear Scorpius,_

_ Father would kill me if he knew I was writing to you. My Uncle Harry and your father may have forgiven and forgotten, but my father is not so merciful. On my first day of Hogwarts, before the train ride to school he told me that I had to beat you at everything, Wizard Chess, exams, schoolwork, spells, everything! Can you believe him? So, forgive me if my owls come few and far between. I've told the family I'll be writing to my friends Biddy and Abby, which is true, but some of my cousins could become suspicious, so I have to be careful. How is your vacation going? Anything interesting? _

_Rose Weasley_

_Dear Rose,_

_ Don't worry too much about your father. I doubt my father would be too pleased at me writing to a Weasley, no offense. He's still bitter about the rivalry in school, and a little mad that your dad was never able to come to an agreement, but he is a forgiving man, but he does have a lot of pride. That's what my mum's always saying anyway. As for our vacation, it is well. My grandparents are visiting for the week and granddad is very quiet these days. We don't talk much in our family anyways, what with my father's history and my granddad's participation in you-know-what, but he does take the time to read to me on occasion. He always tells me to choose the right path, whatever that means. I guess I'll find out soon. How is your vacation so far? I hope you're enjoying yourself._

_Scorpius_

_Dear Scorpius,_

_ My vacation is going splendidly! All of my cousins are together under the same roof and I don't mean to brag, but we have just enough people to hold our own Quidditch games out on the beach. We're at my uncle and aunt's beach house for the month, I'm sure I've told you. My grandfather has set six hoops up on the sand and we've been having nightly games. My team is called the Weasley Wolpertingers. We've got my cousin Teddy who's the keeper, he's brilliant I tell you! My cousin Victoire and I are chasers along with my Uncle Bill, and my cousins James and Dominique are beaters. And Uncle Harry, of course, is our seeker. The other team is my dad's team; they're the Weasley Wendigos. My dad's the keeper, my cousin Molly is the seeker, my cousin Lucy is a beater and my Uncle George is a beater. He was a beater on the Gryffindor team while he was at school. And my cousins Fred and Roxanne are chasers regularly. The last chaser changes all the time, but most of the time it's my aunt Ginny. She used to play for the Holyhead Harpies as a chaser, brilliant she was! Sometimes, when Aunt Ginny can't play or doesn't want to, then my mum steps in as a chaser. She did last night, and let me just say that she can't play Quidditch to save her life. But you didn't hear it from me. When mum can't play then Aunt Angelina will play, or Aunt Fleur, but usually it's Aunt Ginny or mum. So far our team is in the lead with two games won, dad's team has only won one game. Uncle Harry is still a great seeker, even though Teddy likes to call him an old man! Well my hand's kind of tired. Keep me updated on your vacation!_

_Rose_

_Dear Rose,_

_ Your family sounds like fun. I wish I had some cousins to play Quidditch with. But it's just me and my mother, father, grandparents, and Aunt Daphne. But Aunt Daphne isn't married and doesn't have any children. She's rather cold and unfeeling. She kind of reminds me of a lizard. You know when you walk by them they either scatter really fast or stand really still so you may not notice them? She does both. Maybe she doesn't like children. I don't think she's ever liked me. She's not very talkative at all. And then there's my mother who is the complete opposite. She's very talkative and she and my gram will sit in the parlor and chat for ages and ages and then call me in so they can both grab my cheeks and comment on what a nice young man I'm turning into, and mother will go into her spiel about how she's so glad the family's name has been cleared and she and my father have chosen to raise me the way they have. It's boring to listen to, and I try to visit with my father and grandfather, but they're always talking about nonsense and so I usually find my way up to my room to read or listen to music. I have a pet owl, Furb. You obviously know this as he's the one bringing you my letters. He's very nice and likes to perch on the edge of my desk until I find him crackers that I've stuffed down into my drawers. The next time he comes, give him a cracker, next to mice, they're his favorite. Hope all is well._

_Scorpius_

_Dear Scorpius_

_ I'm so sorry you spend most of the time by yourself. Does your family ever decorate the house for Christmas? The house here is all decked out in greenery and tinsel. My grandmother goes crazy every year and decorates everything! Last year I found peppermints under my pillow, they were delicious! We've played two more games since I last wrote, our team won them both! That makes Wolpertingers:4 and Wendigos:1. Dad's a little sore about it. After our win last night he wouldn't even speak to Uncle Harry and went straight to bed. Dad's always been a sore loser, but you didn't hear it from me. Well, Uncle Harry did find the snitch in the first five minutes. Our team had scored ten points already and their team had none. It was funny when we all walked into the house after ten minutes. My grandma whipped us all up a congratulations on the shortest game of Quidditch she'd ever seen cake and dad, who's usually fond of cake, went straight upstairs and to bed. Mum just shook her head. There's not much else to report, other than my cousins and I may be going to Diagon Alley on Tuesday. We'll probably be hanging around Weasley Wizard Wheezes for the majority of the day, in case you happen to pop in, you may see me. _

_Rose_

_P.S. I didn't know you could read! Joking. Really though? I didn't know you liked to read._

_Dear Rose,_

_ I love to read thank you very much! I wasn't joking when I asked to borrow your _Sonnets of a Sorcerer _book. I would like to read it. As for your Quidditch games, I am rooting for your team. It sounds like loads of fun! If you ever need a spare beater, I can be an asset. And now that I think about it, Tuesday sounds like good day to venture into Diagon Alley. I've been meaning to get over to Weasley Wizard Wheezes. I'll always need Canary Creams or Headless Hats for when Aunt Daphne's around. _

_Scorpius_

_Dear Naughty Scorpius,_

_ If your aunt already doesn't particularly care for you, must you give her further reasons to despise your existence? But I must say, those Canary Creams can come in handy. One time, my younger brother Hugo and I were playing hide and seek and I slipped one cream into his pocket. I just knew he wouldn't be able to resist a nibble. Suffice it to say, he turned into a singing canary all right and I found the hiding spot he'd been using the whole time when I couldn't find him. Best investment I ever made! I look forward to seeing you on Tuesday, in the Canary Cream isle. _

_Rose_

_Dear Scorpius,_

_ It was fun getting to see you on Tuesday. My Uncle George really liked your idea for a.. what did you call it wand? A prank wand that only gives off one spell, that's brilliant! I think he's going to try to sell it. Well, it seems you've gotten in good with one of my family members, although my cousin Dominique did seem to fall for your piercing gray eyes. She did talk about you for the rest of the day. It got a little annoying really._

_Rose_

_Dear Rose,_

_ I called it a "Spell Stick Wand", and don't forget in addition to doing only one spell, it also looks and feels like the holder's wand. So if you were to switch them, the holder won't know it until they perform a spell. How humiliating would that be if I switched my Aunt Daphne's wand and she tried to use the Spell Stick at work and transfigured a load of paper into a swarm of bats? Do you think I could get her fired?_

_Scorpius_

_P.S. Piercing gray eyes? Do you like my piercing gray eyes?_

_Dear Scorpius,_

_ Oh brother, will you ever learn? _

_Rose_

_P.S. No. _

_Dear Rose,_

_ What? No? I find them rather dashing and my mother says that soon I'll be able to get all the girls with these eyes. Don't you think so?_

_Scorpius_

_Dear Scorpius,_

_ I'd rather talk about something else, like our Quidditch games. So far we've played nine games, our team winning six of them, and the other team winning three. And believe me, my dad's so proud of his three wins. But honestly, I think my Uncle Harry purposefully didn't catch the snitch and even think he led my cousin Molly to it the last game. Their team won with a hundred and eighty point lead. Dad was tickled. Tomorrow, my mum's parents are coming to give us our Christmas presents. My mum's parents are muggles and have never been to my Uncle Bill and Aunt Fleur's house before. They've also never been in the same vicinity as so many magic-folks before. This should be interesting, especially with the pranks my cousins are bound to try tomorrow. My mum will have them all hanging by their toes from the laundry line tomorrow, that's for sure. _

_Rose_

_Dear Rose,_

_ I think it's fascinating that you have muggles in your family. As you must know, my family is pure-blood and sometimes it can get a little boring. While my parents are a tiny bit more open-minded about muggles and muggle-borns than my grandparents, my mum and especially my Aunt Daphne don't want me taking Muggle Studies next year at school. Mum doesn't condone it because she says I'll never need it, since I'll be marrying a pure-blood girl when I'm older (really, they have it all planned out?) and dad just nods and agrees with mum, something he says I'll be doing as well when I'm older. Anyway, has your cousin mentioned anything more about me lately?_

_Scorpius_

_Dear Scorpius,_

_ Sorry it's taken so long for me to write back. My grandparents were here and things got hectic what with not only my cousins trying to prank them, but my Uncle George was just as bad! Aunt Angelina had to restrain him with a jelly-legs jinx, which my grandpa thought was the most hilarious thing he'd ever seen. He actually asked Aunt Angelina to try it out on him, to which my grandma said it was not going to happen in a million years. Then we had cake and it took his mind off of it altogether. Back to school tomorrow. I hope you haven't fallen ill with Aunt Daphne anymore, you're liable to not to return home for the summer. See you tomorrow!_

_Rose_


	8. Those Ravenclaw Kids Sure Are Crafty

Chapter 8: Those Ravenclaw Kids Sure Are Crafty (And Sensitive)

In the weeks upon returning to Hogwarts, Rose and Scorpius saw very little of each other. With nothing to really study, and no papers to write until nearing the end of term, they had little reason to get together. Rose was suddenly very aware of how much she missed spending time with him; his jokes, his chatter, his disinterest in school work and the fact that she had to force him to study. She loved the time she spent with Biddy in the common room and the late nights they spent in their four-poster beds giggling and talking until one of the other girls woke up and threw a stuffed bear at them to stop, but something just wasn't the same.

It wasn't until mid-March that the school work began piling on, but Rose found it hard to find a time to ask Scorpius to study, because she was always studying. She was always up late in the common room with the rest of the Ravenclaws who were catching up or going above and beyond on school work.

But one night, around nine o'clock, some sixth years and two seventh year girls came flooding into the common room from the corridor and the two seventh year girls were going at it, arguing and such. Rose, who'd been so entranced in her book looked up to see the girls yelling at each other, and everyone was getting up and circling around them.

"-couldn't even think in class today because of you and your stupid jinxes!" cried one girl, Emma Waverly. She was apparently top of the class so far.

"Well maybe you'll think about _that_ next time you accuse someone of cheating!" cried the other girl who was Holly Foxbrown. Her red hair looked even redder than usual and then Rose realized that it was! She was a metamorphmagus just like Teddy.

"I know what I saw, Holly!" Emma yelled, "And that was an Auto-Answer Quill!"

"What happened?" asked Marius who was now behind Rose and Biddy's table. Apparently, he'd come from the boys' rooms upstairs because of all the shouting.

"No idea," Rose replied.

"Emma turned Holly into Professor McGonagall last week for cheating on an exam," Maria said coming in from the left. "Holly got so mad that she jinxed literally everything Emma owned so she couldn't use it. She's been so stressed and paranoid, I don't think she's gotten a bit of sleep in the past three days. If this keeps on, she won't be ready to take her N.E.W.T.S."

"Poor Emma," Biddy said. "Well, if I caught someone cheating, I would most definitely turn them in. Especially if they were a Ravenclaw."

"Well, I better get back to my Potions essay," Marius said a little too quickly and left even before Rose could look back. When she turned back around the two seventh year girls were gone and the common room was going back to its' normal arrangement of studying tables.

"Wow," Rose said. "They take things so seriously."

Lindsey Young, an average height first year Ravenclaw girl, her long brown hair pulled back in a French braid, walked up to their table and sat down ready to gossip. If you wanted to know anything you went to Lindsey. "Oh yes," she said. "Fifth, sixth, and seventh year Ravenclaws get _very _competitive. Some older girls were telling me that it's normal for everyone to sabotage everyone else for good grades. Even best friends against each other."

Rose looked over at Biddy who was looking right back at her. Biddy was the closest thing to a best friend that she had, other than Scorpius, of course, and she couldn't imagine ever trying to sabotage Biddy's studies, especially when she knew how important they were to both of them. "I heard that Holly's got three Auto-Answer quills in her trunk upstairs," Lindsey continued, "which is why she's always got it locked. Apparently, you have to answer five questions to get it open and they are deep personal questions too. If she's not hiding the quills, then she's hiding _something_." Lindsey looked at them, her face serious as a heart attack before nodding and walking back to her table.

"Don't mind her," Maria said. "Lindsey exaggerates quite a bit."

"So Holly doesn't have Auto-Answer quills?" Biddy asked, hopeful.

"No, we think she does," answered Maria. "But unless we see it, the prefects and Head Girl can't do anything about it." Maria shrugged her shoulders and walked away.

"You would really turn someone from your own house in for cheating?" Rose asked.

"Yes I would," said Biddy. "I've always been taught that honesty is the best policy. And besides, Ravenclaws are held to higher standards than everyone else at Hogwarts." And with that being said, she returned to her books until an hour later when she announced she was going to bed.

The following day in History of Magic, Scorpius wasn't there. She didn't have a partner to help with the text work, which didn't really bother her as she usually did most of the work anyway, but it was a little disconcerting not having him there. She looked for him in the corridors and in Defense Against the Dark Arts, but he was nowhere to be found.

At lunch, she craned her head so hard to hear if anyone at the Slytherin table was talking about him that she got a crick in her neck. She tried to turn it back and it wouldn't budge, and she tried to get Biddy and Maria to massage it, but it still didn't help. So instead of going to the library to study like she normally would, she had to go to the hospital wing.

"Have a seat there," Madam Pomfrey said before heading to the back. Rose was stuck sitting on the edge of the bed with her body facing the window and her head facing the door to the left. She sighed and cursed herself with getting herself into this position.

"What happened Weasley?" came a familiar voice, and it was embarrassing for Rose, but she had to stand up and turn around just so she could see Scorpius lying on the bed nose runny and red and a bucket lying beside his bed.

"What happened to me?" Rose said. "What happened to you?"

"Aww, nothing," Scorpius said. "I just decided to take a puking pastel and fever fudge at the same time."

"Brilliant," Rose said sarcastically, rolling her eyes.

"Did you break your neck just to come see me?" he smiled.

"It's not broken!" Rose defended. "And no, I didn't even know you were here." She crossed her arms and by this time Madam Pomfrey was back with her wand.

"Sit," she said to Rose and then, "this may hurt a bit." Rose felt her a force move her head to the right and there was a loud popping sound, a tiny pang of pain and then enormous amount of relief in her neck. She was looking straight and perfectly able to move her neck all around. "No sudden neck movements for the next day or so," said Madam Pomfrey. "No craning your neck, no sudden jerks left or right, don't look behind you too fast. Alright?"

"Yes ma'am," Rose said before turning around.

"Hopefully I'll see you in class soon," said Scorpius. Rose just waved her arm, not even caring to look behind her. But all the way to the common room she was smiling. And she couldn't stop.

After a few days Scorpius was back in class, and as eager to learn as ever, that is to say, not much. Library study sessions continued as normal until one day Scorpius looked up. She felt his eyes on her and without looking up she said, "What is it now?"

"What's your middle name?" he asked.

Rose looked up, confused. "Casandra, why?"

"No reason," he said returning to his work.

"Do you have any pets, if so, what are their names?" he asked after a few seconds.

"Yes, an owl named Edgar, why?"

"Don't worry about it," Scorpius continued writing.

Rose looked back down at her books, but a few moments later he asked another question.

"If you had to choose between The Weird Sisters or A Bludger to the Head, which would you pick?"

"The Weird Sisters. Please tell me why you're so curious about me, all of a sudden."

"Nope," Scorpius wasn't even looking at her, but he had the end of his quill in his mouth and the his eyes on his paper. But as Rose looked closer, she realized it wasn't his homework at all, but this week's Quibbler. Rose snatched it away from him as fast as she could.

"Hey!" he cried. "You weren't done filling it out."

"What is it?" Rose looked at the title. "_Are you best friends forever?_ What?"

"It's a quiz," said Scorpius. "It's seeing if we have things in common. You fill it out and then it tells you if you're destined to be friends."

"And what if that piece of paper says we're not."

"Then I can't study with you anymore." Scorpius's face was serious, but his eyes were laughing. Rose smiled, and then giggled, and then chuckled, and the laughed louder and Scorpius's serious face fell and he too laughed.

"Miss Weasley and Mr. Malfoy," Professor Anderson said coming around the corner of books. "This is a library, not a place for idle chatter and laughter. If you wish to talk, then please do it in the corridor. Otherwise, zip it."

"Yes professor," Rose said trying to contain her laughter. When Anderson walked away Scorpius stuck out his tongue, and Rose hit him with the Quibbler. She shook her head and he smiled again. But she couldn't stay mad at him. She just couldn't.

"May I finish that?" he asked.

Rose rolled her eyes and tossed the Quibbler back to him. With his quill he readied himself for the next question. "How long have we known each other? Well that's a tough question. Do they mean how long have we known each other or how long we've been friends. Because I do recall you didn't like me very much at first."

"Well, that's because you were a jerk."

"I was only a jerk because you were a snob."

Rose was taken aback. "I was not a snob!"

"Yes you were," Scorpius said chuckling. Then he began to mock her in an unflattering girly voice, "Oh look at me, I'm Rose Weasley. I'm in Ravenclaw and my mum and dad helped defeat the Dark Lord, and Scorpius's dad was a supporter. He's in Slytherin and will probably be evil. I need to show him up because he's lazy and doesn't want to do school work. Blah, blah, blah." But when Scorpius started laughing Rose was almost in tears. He'd hit a nerve and he'd hit it hard. She was _not _a snob. She was _not_ like that at all! Immediately, she gathered her books and raced out of the library, not looking back and not caring if he followed or didn't follow. At that moment in time, she didn't care to ever see Scorpius Malfoy again.


	9. Cousinly Advice

**AUTHOR'S NOTE: Hi! I know I'm a terrible person for not updating for weeks, but I've been so busy working, and preparing for my class I'm taking next week, add a little writer's block and SEVERE lack of motivation and viola, there's me! But needless to say I am back and a writin' fool (: I really wanted to have a Rose-Victoire scene because I just love Victoire and so here it is! (: **

Chapter 9: Cousinly Advice

The next morning, Rose was in the worst mood ever. She had to drag herself out of bed rather than getting up gratefully like usual mornings. Her hair was the frizziest and bushiest it had ever been, and she didn't even go to breakfast so that she could be alone in the common room. She sat at a table by herself and practiced _Wingardium Leviosa _over and over again on her Potions text book. Finally, she heard the class bell and drudged off to Charms.

She didn't speak at all in class. Not to Biddy, not to Albus. She didn't even raise her hand to answer questions. She didn't even pay attention to a word Professor Flitwick was saying. All she could think about was what Scorpius had said the night before. She knew he was just joking. Or was he? Did he really see her that way? As a spoiled, stuck-up brat? She wasn't really like that was she? She wasn't prejudiced against everyone else because her parents helped take down the world's worst dark wizard, was she? No. Certainly not. But… maybe? No. Definitely not.

Rose sighed and she was Biddy look at her from the corner of her eye. "Rose," Biddy said. "Are you alright?"

Rose groaned something of a "yeah" but she knew Biddy wasn't buying it.

"Because you came in last night all frustrated and went straight to bed. And today you're in a mood," Biddy's voice was calm and soft, like she was talking to a child. "Are you sick?"

"No," Rose replied staring at her book. "I'm just a little homesick I suppose." It was the first thing that came to her head.

"Oh," Biddy said a little relieved. Rose thought maybe Biddy thought she was mad at her. "I am too. But we only have a few months left. And then we're home for the summer!"

Rose managed a slight smile, and then the bell rang to signal the next set of classes. Rose didn't have another class scheduled for the day, so she went back up to the common room and laid down on her bed to try for a nap. But her head was so filled with busy thoughts of what Scorpius said, and then soon realizing that she was homesick, she just hadn't noticed it with being so busy. Then she thought of Albus and his invisibility cloak. Perhaps she could wrangle it away from him somehow and use it against Scorpius. But the more she thought about that the more discouraged she got, because Scorpius's friends had found Albus the last time he tried, she was sure to get caught.

"Is she in here?" a voice came from just outside the door. Rose turned around on her bed just in time to see Victoire walk in. "Hey kid," she said smiling.

"Hey," Rose said weakly. She sat up, allowing Victoire to sit on the side of the bed.

"What's going on?" Victoire said, getting down to business.

"Nothing," Rose said. She was trying to avoid this at all costs.

"Something," Victoire said. "You don't just take naps and avoid people for nothing." Victoire pulled a bag of Bertie Botts Every Flavor Beans out of her robe pocket and offered some to Rose, but she shook her head. So Victoire popped one in her mouth. "Hmm," she said surprised, "Chocolate." After a slight pause and a deep breath from Victoire she said, "I think I know what's going on."

Rose looked up at Victoire's freckled face, her beautiful sharp nose and long blonde hair. For Rose's whole life she longed to be as beautiful as Victoire, and right now, understanding and kind, she was more beautiful than ever, and it just made Rose even more depressed. "You do?"

"I think you may have a little crush? Yeah?" Victoire's mouth transformed into a big smile. She looked at Rose expectantly.

Immediately Rose's eyes widened in horror. "No!" she practically yelled. "That is not it! I wouldn't like Scorpius Malfoy if he was the last boy on earth!"

"Scorpius Malfoy?" Victoire asked standing up. "Who said anything about Scorpius- oh I see. You do like him, don't you?"

"NO!" Rose was so mad she wanted to cry. She was mad at Scorpius for saying what he said, mad at Victoire for prying, and also mad at her for being so understanding and having no judgement, because she was expecting an earful. But mostly, she was mad at herself for being this way to her cousin. A cousin who'd always been there for her, been like a big sister to her.

"Okay, okay, just calm down. Why has he gotten you so upset?"

Rose took a deep breath and told Victoire about how she and Malfoy were getting together to study and how their friendship grew and grew. And finally, when she'd finished without stopping for nearly five minutes, she took a deep breath and then looked up at Victoire like a kid in trouble might look at their upset parents. But Victoire's understanding eyes and sweet smiled still remained.

"I thought something was going on," Victoire said. "I didn't expect it to be Scorpius Malfoy by any means, but I thought you were acting odd lately."

"He's my best friend Victoire," Rose finally said. "It's weird for me to say that, but he is. And right now I never want to see him again."

Rose huffed and threw her body down on the bed burying her head into her pillow. She felt Victoire play with her hair, twirling around the waves near the ends of her long red locks. "I hate him!" Rose said, but the pillow muffled her words.

"No you don't," Victoire said. "You didn't like what he said, but no matter what you feel right now, he is your best friend and you will get over this soon. There has to be something good about him to possess you to become his friend in the first place, right?" Rose looked up and took in what she'd heard. She hated to admit it, but her cousin was right. She was always right. Rose nodded and sniffed.

"I supposed I could give him the benefit of the doubt," Rose said.

Victoire laughed. "Yes," she said. "Give him the benefit of the doubt." For the next hour or so they sat there, Victoire asking questions about Scorpius and inquiring about their friendship, what they did, and if they had anything in common. By the end of their visit, Victoire was completely convinced that Scorpius would apologize, given the chance, and Rose should accept it, saying she'd been too quick to her temper. Rose took in every bit of advice and held on to it until the next time she saw Scorpius.

It wasn't until dinner that she finally saw him, sitting at his table in the Great Hall with Goyle and another Slytherin boy who was almost twice as tall as some of the students and so skinny that if he were turned sideways he would have disappeared altogether. Surely it wasn't the time or place to speak to him, so when she'd finished dinner, she waited in the foyer outside of the Great Hall for him to come out. For seventeen long minutes she waited, and every time a student walked out she stood up from the bench where she was sitting and looked to see if it was him.

When he finally did come out, he was with Goyle, but upon seeing her, he looked at his large friend, "Oh look!" he said, "I've forgotten my mail. Go ahead to the common room, I'll catch up," and thick-headed Goyle turned down the stairs toward the dungeons. But instead of returning into the Great Hall, Scorpius headed to Rose's bench.

It was a bit awkward at first, with neither speaking, and when the silence became unbearable, Rose finally said "I'm sorry," Scorpius looked at her, confused. "You're sorry?" he said. "The great Rose Weasley is sorry? To Scorpius Malfoy of all people?" he pretended to be shocked. "I think this moment should be noted, written down for generations to come. Monumented. Statues should be erected in your honor. Figures of us! Standing and sitting just like this, here in this precise location! A large plaque will stand next to it saying 'Rose Weasley of'-."

"Enough," Rose said. "I'm serious. I'm sorry."

"It's alright," Scorpius said. "I shouldn't have said what I did. It's not my fault you're so sensitive."

"Sensitive?" Rose was up off her bench and ready. "I'm not too sensitive, you're just _insensitive_!"

"I am not," Scorpius said, crossing his arms. He was smiling and Rose saw his smile grow bigger. Then he chuckled, which caused her to throw her hands up in the air and sigh.

"You are the most childish person I've ever met in my life."

"Then you should really meet a few more people."

"Do you accept my apology or not?" Rose asked, annoyed. She was so frazzled by the fact that Scorpius Malfoy could get the best of her at any moment, and then the next day they were the best of friends as if he wasn't annoying and sneaky.

"I will," he said, "on one condition."

"You're not copying my Potions homework, I've already told you."

"No," he said smiling. "You have to continue studying with me."

It wasn't bad at all, as Rose thought it'd be. She was planning on doing just that anyway. "Deal," she said shaking his hand. And with a swift movement he pulled her hand up in his and his head bowed down, planting a sweet peck on the top of her hand.

"Goodnight Rose," he said before hopping over to the steps and descending until the top of his blonde head was out of sight.


	10. Out with a Bang

Chapter 10: Out with a Bang

"Alright," Professor Longbottom said when he'd stepped into Greenhouse 2. "Final class of the year, how do you feel about that first years?"

Some students hooped and hollered, but Rose hung her head. Hogwarts was coming to an end and soon she'd be headed home. She did miss her family terribly, but she would miss all of her friends here, Abby Hanker, Biddy Buncheon, Maria Langley, and yes, even Marius Davenport. But most of all she would miss her friend and foe Scorpius Malfoy. She found herself drifting off away from Herbology when she finally snapped to with an "ahem" from Professor Longbottom.

Rose looked up and saw Longbottom looking expectantly at her, "I'm sorry professor, what was the question?"

"Five points from Ravenclaw Miss Weasley, for being unprepared. I said, what affect does eating the plant Alihotsy have?"

"It causes hysteria," Rose answered. She'd been up to date in all of her studying for her final exams. There was no way she wasn't finishing Hogwarts with a bang.

Leaving Herbology to go to lunch she was walking along with Biddy when she felt a tap on her shoulder. She turned but no one was behind them, except for a few Hufflepuffs at the end of the corridor. She chalked it up to a ghost or Peeves the Poltergiest and continued to the Great Hall. However, when she turned to go into the hall, with Biddy and Abby Hanker in front of her she ran smack dab into… air. For a moment she was perplexed, but soon realized. "Albus!" she whispered. "Are you mad?"

Giggling came from under the invisibility cloak, and he lifted the hood just so she could see his face. "Pretty funny, huh?" he laughed. "Bet you were scared huh?"

"I most certainly was not!" Rose tried to keep her voice a whisper. "What are you doing out here with that on? Suppose a teacher had run into you instead of me?"

"What?" Albus said. "I've been running around the corridors all morning, no one's even noticed that I'm out of class. The professors are too busy working on their exams. Even Anderson didn't notice I was out of Transfiguration, and I sit in the front row!"

"How would you know?" Rose crossed her arms. "You weren't there."

"I had friends tell me."

Rose frowned and then noticed that a few Gryffindors at the end of their table were starting to stare at here. She then realized how stupid she must have looked talking to thin air. Great, that was all she needed, to have people thinking she was loony.

Rose grabbed onto Albus's arm, she hoped, and pulled him over to a corner in the corridor away from everyone eating lunch. "So did you want something from me or were you simply trying to annoy me?"

"What's with you these days?" Albus asked, taking off his cloak and holding it in his arms. "You're not as fun as you used to be."

"I'm at school now," she replied. "I have to remain in study mode all the time."

"Yeah, and you have a secret boyfriend."

Rose's eyes grew wide. "What?"

"Yeah," Albus pulled out a licorice wand from his pocket and bit off an end, "Biddy tells me you sneak off to the library by yourself and sit in the far back corners so no one will notice that you have a boyfriend, can't tell who he is because he's always in the shadows, but she sees." His lips smacked together as she chewed the licorice loudly.

"It's not a boyfriend," she said. "He's just a friend."

"So you do have a secret friend, huh?" his face lit up. "I knew it! James and I had a bet going, I just won five galleons."

"Great," Rose said unamused. "I'm the punchline of a joke."

"No," Albus said sweetly. "You're the terms of a bet."

Rose made a face and turned to go into the Great Hall. "Wait," Albus said. "There is something. The night before we go home, James and I are going to set off fireworks from the astronomy tower, kind of a final prank slash hooray school is over thing before going home. We could always use another person."

"Now I think you are mad," Rose said. "There's no way I could help you. I'm trying to be a prefect one day."

"Come on Rosie!" he cried. "This'll be like old times, you know, when you didn't have a boyfriend and were fun."

"He's not my boyfriend!" it came out louder than intended. "And I am fun," she added.

Albus smiled and lifted his eyebrows, a dare.

"Fine," she said. "I will help you. But one sign of trouble and I'm blaming the whole thing on you two."

"I would expect nothing else, cuz," and with a swish of his arms, his cloak was back on and he vanished.

Rose rolled her eyes and went to lunch, silently worrying about what was to come.

The Sunday evening before exams, Rose studied alone in the library, it was fuller than usual but somehow she'd managed to snag her usual table in the back corner between the W's and X's. Scorpius, however, seemed to be the only student in the school not in the library. He had his charms exam in the morning, where was he?

Rose looked outside and then up at the clock on the wall opposite her, it was only seven o'clock. She had one hour. She quickly and quietly snatched up her things and headed for the school grounds. She figured she knew where he might be.

Surely enough, his blonde head gave him away, under the great tree beside the Black Lake he lay, book over his face, probably asleep. As she approached he made no movement nor gave any sign he knew she was there. As she got closer she heard a faint snore and stifled a laugh.

"Ahem," she said. Nothing. "AHEM" she said louder and he woke abruptly, tearing the book from his face.

"Sorry," he said. "Dozed off," he wiped at his eyes and looked up at her and smiled faintly.

"I can see that," Rose said before sitting down. "Now, open to page one hundred and sixty-three. We're going to get this before curfew. Rose could see him smile out of the corner of her eye, but she proceeded to read instructions for basic charms out of the book, having him perform them on anything they could find outside.

Exams came and went, and Rose had almost forgotten about the prank slash hip hooray celebration… _almost_. While leaving for the goodbye feast, feeling cool and confident about her exams she overheard a voice in the next corridor. Whispering as to not get caught. She strained her ears.

"-don't think we'll get caught do you?" said a shy voice.

"No one could trace it back to us!" said a gruff voice that sent chills down Rose's spine. She hoped it wasn't who she thought it was. "It'll be fun, you'll see! When those Gryffindor boys go to set off those fireworks and this appears in the sky, no one will be laughing then!" She saw the shadows on the walls move and she ducked behind a suit of armor, watching as none other than Gregory Goyle II walked by with a small Slytherin boy, Lee Forrest.

Rose's eyes widened, what were they planning? She had to warn Albus, but he and James would be setting up for the prank soon. Immediately she ran up the astronomy tower but they were nowhere to be found. She found their stash of fireworks hidden under a bench in a dark corner like they'd said, but they must have gone down to dinner already.

She ran back down the stairs and by the time she made it to the Great Hall the feast had already begun. On the way to Gryffindor table, Professor Anderson stopped her. "Miss Weasley," she said in her high pitched you're-my-favorite-student-but-I-still-have-to-say-something-to-you-because-I-can't-pick-favorites-voice, "the feast has already begun, you must take your place at your own table."

"I'm sorry professor, but I really must speak with my cousins right now," Rose tried to maneuver her way around Anderson, but the professor wasn't having any of it."

"I strongly urge you to get back to your table right this instant," her voice was stronger and more strict.

"But you don't understand!" Rose had never pleaded with a teacher before, nor had she ever defied one, but this was important.

"Right away, Miss Weasley," Anderson's stare was unfailing. Rose's shoulders and head fell and she turned to walk back to her place. She sulked through dinner while her friends and housemates laughed and cheered and carried on about summer vacation.

But as soon as the Great Hall feast was over and Professor McGonagall's last words and well wishes said, and Gryffindor deemed House Cup winner, everyone filed out to head to their dormitories for their final night. Rose darted up the stairs of the astronomy tower just in time to see James and Albus setting off the first fireworks.

They were loud and large and lit up the sky. From below, students were coming out of the castle to view them, and some sat in windows and looked out.

"Stop!" Rose yelled.

"What?" James yelled back, his round glasses slipping down to his nose. He was laughing and carrying on, as was Albus.

"Stop it right now!" Rose screamed, pleading. "Something is going to happen!"

"Yeah!" Albus said. "We'll live on as heroes!" he laughed again.

"No! Something bad!"

"Something bad indeed," said a voice behind them. All three turned around to see professor Anderson, but as soon as they saw her, her stern face gave way to a horrified one, and the three turned around to see something they'd never before seen in their lifetime except in the books they'd read.

In the night sky was the Dark Mark, the symbol of the greatest dark wizard of all time, Voldemort.


	11. Home

**AUTHOR'S NOTE: Last chapter! Yay! (: It's been a sweet journey, I must say. But please, if you liked this story it's only getting better. I already have some of the next years written and I will be writing all seven years at Hogwarts. So please read Year Two when it comes out, because Rose & Scorpius are only getting better! (: Enjoy!**

Chapter 11: Home

"I have never in my life seen such behavior from students such as this." Professor Anderson was raging. Her large blue eyes that usually sparkled when she taught were raging mad and Rose had never seen an adult this mad, even when her father saw her mother's old boyfriend Victor Krum in Diagon Alley once and almost transfigured him into a dung-beetle. The three cousins were standing side by side in her office opposite her desk, at which she wasn't even sitting. She was pacing the area behind her desk, quickly and frustrated. She then stopped and stared at them before continuing.

"I have to admit, I did expect a little something from you boys, but Rose Weasley! Never in my years has a brilliant top-ranked student such as you landed themselves in my office!" Rose looked up and thought the top of Anderson's head was going to explode. Her usually tight bun seemed to be getting tighter and tighter by the minute. Rose looked down at the floor, ashamed.

"But that finale display of pure filth," the last word came out as if it were the worst word she could ever possibly say, "was nothing, and I mean nothing that I expected out of any student at this school, let alone you three considering who your parents are."

The three of them looked up and began protesting.

"We had nothing to do with it." Albus cried.

"I don't even know how to conjure something like that!" James pleaded.

"That's what I was trying to tell them at dinner, professor!" Rose yelled.

"Wait, wait, wait," Anderson said, holding up both hands for them to be quiet. "You knew about this Miss Weasley? So it was you who did this?"

Rose's eyes filled with tears, she was frustrated and very scared that this could all be pinned on her, that she let them fall down her cheeks without trying to stop them. "N-no!" she cried. "I overheard them in the corridor right b-before d-dinner! They were p-planning on doing s-something to ruin the p-prank! I ran to tell James and Albus, b-but you made me go to my t-table!" Rose was sobbing now, and James wrapped and arm around her comforting her. But she didn't want to be comforted; she wanted to be home, away from Goyle, away from Hogwarts, and away from the Dark Mark.

"Then who did this?"

"Goyle," Rose finally said when she'd composed herself. "I heard him and Lee Forrest talking about doing something, and that must have been it."

Anderson sighed. "Well, seeing as you three are who you are, and since this is the first time anything like this has happened, and since you go home tomorrow, I'm sure any kind of punishment is out of the question. But please remember that next year, the three of you will be on close watch."

"But what about Goyle?" Albus said.

"As well as Gregory Goyle and his friend Lee Forrest. Now, head back to your dormitories, quickly, and finish packing, then it's straight to bed. Go."

The three students left Anderson's office. "No doubt that git Malfoy was behind this too, using Goyle and Forrest to do his bidding."

"He had nothing to do with this," Rose said defensively. "He wasn't even there."

"Yeah," James said, "so he wouldn't get caught. Goyle will do anything for him, he's his lackey."

"Malfoy would never do something like this!"

"Look at him Rose!" James yelled. "He's a _Malfoy_! His father and grandfather were huge supporters of Voldemort and now he's just as demented as them!"

"He's _nothing_ like his father!" Rose yelled back.

"Oh yeah? How would you know?" James was fuming now.

"Because he's my 'secret friend'!" Rose said putting the words in air quotes. "And if you would stop judging him for one minute and took the time to get to know him, then you would see that he would never do anything like this!" Then, she stormed off to Ravenclaw dormitory.

"Pssst, Rose." Rose heard in the darkness of her room. Biddy, Lindsey Young, and Amelia Guest were sound asleep in their four poster beds. She sat up straight and looked around.

"Lumos," she said and a ball of light lit the end of her wand. There at the tip were James's round-rimmed glasses. "James!" Rose whispered. "What are you doing here?"

"I wanted to apologize," he said, eyes sorry.

"Can't you do it in the morning like a normal human being would," said Rose.

"I couldn't sleep. And I knew I had to apologize before I could."

"It's alright," Rose tried to say, but James wouldn't let her.

"No, it's not alright," he said. "I shouldn't be so quick to judge. Sometimes I think I do look down on others because of who my father is. And I shouldn't have yelled at you like that."

"It really is okay, James," Rose lost herself for a few minutes and then remembered she needed to whisper. "You didn't know, and I really shouldn't have hidden it from everyone. I don't know why I did it in the first place. Appearances, I suppose."

"Well, I think it would be nice to get to know this guy," James said after a few moments. "Maybe on the train home?"

"Sure," Rose said. "If he isn't too busy conjuring up his next Dark Mark." James's face fell and eyes grew wide, but Rose smiled. "What? I can make a joke." But James didn't laugh. "Too soon?" she asked. James nodded gravely before bursting out into a laugh that made Amelia stir. "Shhh," Rose reprimanded. "You really need to get back to bed."

"Yes ma'am," James said mockingly, and Rose smacked his shoulder. "You will make a good prefect one day."

"Thank you," Rose said proudly and smiled.

The morning came and everyone was talking about the previous night's events. "Dark mark" was whispered in everyone's ears to the dismay of a lingering Professor Anderson, while she, Hagrid, and Professor McGonagall tried to get everyone on the train home they stopped to speak in hushed tones about the dark wizard who almost ruled the world.

"Move along, move along," prodded Anderson, her usual blonde bun was now a graceful ballet of ringlets resting on her shoulders, making her look even younger than she was. No wonder she'd always worn it up, to prevent herself from looking like a student.

"Enjoy your summer," McGonagall was telling students as they were boarding the train.

"Rose!" Scorpius ran up behind Rose and she turned to see his usually slicked back hair freely mounting his head. Looked like everyone was really letting themselves go today. "For you," he presented a beautiful long-stemmed rose. "Freshly transfigured."

Rose smiled big and wide, wider than possibly she ever had. "Thank you."

"A rose for a Rose," he said. "Write to me, okay?"

"Of course."


End file.
